Word: popovic
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...Australia has Kieren Perkins (1,500-m free) and Daniel Kowalski (200-, 400- and 1,500-m free). Russia has Barcelona star Aleksandr Popov, who's looking to repeat his 50- and 100-m double. But most eyes in Atlanta will be upon the Americans: Gary Hall Jr., son of three-time Olympic medalist Gary Sr., in the 50-m free; Tom Dolan in the 400-m free and 400-m individual medley relay; and Tripp Schwenk in the 100- and 200-m backstroke...
...Popov had as much luck as pluck that day: the force of the impact knocked out all his dental fillings but caused no serious injuries. So he got the chance to pursue his scheme to develop parachutes for gliders and small planes. Popov quickly discovered that conventional chutes would not work because most accidents happen so close to the ground that the canopies do not have enough time to inflate. To get around that problem, Popov devised a parachute that could be completely deployed by a tiny rocket in a matter of seconds. Since then, the company he founded...
...engine Cessnas. At $5,495, the product is a bit pricey, considering that the typical Cessna sells for about $15,000. Yet many fliers may not put a price limit on peace of mind. "If you fly into a mountainside at night, a parachute is not going to help," Popov admits. "But the majority of midair collisions are not fatal in the air. You're alive all the way down." Popov believes his system could prevent more than half of the 1,000 general-aviation fatalities that occur each year in the U.S. "It's that one added...
Designing the new parachute was Popov's greatest challenge. Hang gliders weigh only 500 lbs., even if you include the pilot. A small Cessna, on the other hand, weighs more than 1,700 lbs., and a standard parachute big enough to float such a craft safely to the ground would fill up a 50-gal. drum. Not very practical. Undaunted, the BRS engineers figured out how to pack the parachute under pressure in such a way that it takes up no more space than a large briefcase and is mounted over the center of the wings. If the craft...
...that's only the beginning, Popov promises. Now on the BRS drawing boards are parachute systems for heavier general-aviation planes and military aircraft. As the planes get bigger, the idea becomes increasingly far-fetched, but it's hard to discount a man who falls 500 ft. and lives to profit from the experience...